Finding Satisfaction
by gracedkelly
Summary: Lord Voldemort won the First War and the world has turned dark. Muggleborns are taught magic in secret and now that Hermione Granger has come of age, she's sent off to educate her own pupil. Scorpius Malfoy is a cocky lad, but a promising student. Unfortunately her student isn't the only one who stole her heart. Jane Eyre/Dramione AU
1. Curiouser And Curiouser

__**A/N: My name, unfortunately, is not J.K. Rowling nor is it Charlotte Brontë. All characters belong to their rightful authors.**__

__Hi guys,__

__Someone on tumblr requested a Dramione drabble in which one of them was a nanny. I have been wanting to write this story for ages, so I decided to make it a short story instead of a drabble.__

__This story has 6 chapters and is already finished, so I will upload one chapter a day!__

__I want to thank my lovely beta, hmweasley, for doing such a fabulous job!__

__That's it, folks! I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think! __

__Love,__

__Kelly__

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><p><strong>Chapter One: Curiouser And Curiouser<strong>

To say that Hermione Granger had a rough upbringing would be an understatement. First of all, her aunt had left her at a young witches school to be schooled in the art of being a proper witch and to learn how to be far less spiteful. She had lost her parents, who had been Muggle dentists, at a rather young age. And last, but most certainly not least, she had been bullied by other students because she studied hard and became the top of her class fast. They had called her many ugly things and most of the teachers had let them. Even better, the Headmistress had encouraged their behaviour because she was a Mudblood and should be put in her place every now and then. "Lest she thinks she's a worthy member of our society," her Headmistress would snipe.

The only reason she had been taught magic at all, Hermione thought, was because of Miss McGonagall. She had always treated her fairly and never called her any ugly names.

She had been called many things over the years; a liar, an orphan, an ugly brat and worst of all, a Mudblood by her peers, by the elite of the wizarding world. What she hadn't been called yet, though, was a breath of fresh air.

Ms. Black gave her a kind smile as she guided Hermione through their majestic hallway, to what seemed to be their living room. If a room like that could even be called such a thing. With its high windows and ceilings, Malfoy Manor was most certainly a sight to behold.

"The master is rarely here," Ms. Black confided in her as she opened another door with a flourish. This one had a more office-like feel to it, and Hermione relaxed almost instantly. She had spent many days studying in McGonagall's offices after all, so this felt like familiar ground to her.

"What do you mean, Ms. Black? He's rarely here? Is he not involved in his child's upbringing?" Hermione sat down after Ms. Black waved her permission for her to do so.

"Oh, no," she laughed uneasily. "The gents in these circles rarely do. After Mrs. Malfoy..." Ms. Black gave a heavy sigh, as if she could exile the sadness in her eyes if she only sighed loud enough. "It's better if the master discusses this with you himself. It's not comely for a lady to gossip."

Hermione couldn't say she disagreed, even though every atom in her body yearned for more information on the elusive Mr. Malfoy. She knew that he had attended Hogwarts, but since they upheld Grindelwald's philosophy after the First Wizarding War, she hadn't had the chance to attend it herself. She had heard, from Miss McGonagall actually, that it used to be a magical place. That once upon a time everyone had been accepted to Hogwarts, everyone who had wanted to learn magic at least. But after Tom Riddle, or Lord Voldemort as he liked to be called, had killed the Headmaster, Dumbledore, all the 'good' teachers had fled the school and had hid in schools for young witches and wizards like Hermione's. There they would still train Muggleborns in secret and harbor them. It was just her luck that she had ended up at the school with only a few Muggleborn sympathisers, like McGonagall.

Now Hogwarts wasn't a safe place anymore for the "impure" of blood, so she hadn't had the chance to meet Mr. Malfoy yet, which reminded her...

"Will me being Muggleborn be a problem?" she asked politely, even though she wanted to throttle someone with the unfairness of it all. She had been called the brightest witch of her age by all of her teachers, save for her Headmistress, and yet the better part of wizarding society wouldn't give her the time of day if they knew of her heritage. Some of them even accused her of having robbed a "real witch" of her magic, which was absurd. When things got that far, Hermione usually made herself scarce. Nothing good came after that kind of statement.

So she had always been upfront with her future employer about who and what she was. There was nothing to be ashamed of, she heard Miss McGonagall say in her head. She was twice the witch of nearly everyone her age, and she should be proud of her abilities.

Ms. Black gave her a kind smile. "Don't let appearances fool you," she said not unkindly. "Mr. Malfoy, well, he is quite fond of his masks and the false sense of safety they provide."

That didn't sound ominous at all, Hermione thought. Nor did it answer her question. Her eyes followed Ms. Black as she paced around the room. She hadn't seen the woman use her wand yet. Nor had she called upon the House Elf, which Hermione assumed they had. She decided to file those questions away for a later date.

"What about my student?" she inquired after several seconds of uncomfortable silence. She gratefully accepted the cup of tea and took a careful sip before putting it on the table between them.

"Scorpius is a bright boy, albeit a bit headstrong." She shook her head with a faint smile. "His education has fallen a bit behind the last few years, but he's a quick study, I assure you. He has the Malfoy charm down pat though, so be sure not to let him too close to your heart, Miss Granger, for he will most certainly break it. But then again," she said absentmindedly, " that goes for both of my boys."

Hermione gazed at the lady in front of her and wondered if she was the infamous Andromeda Tonks, née Black. Rumour was that after rioting wizards had killed her husband and daughter, she had taken on her maiden name again for safety reasons. Hermione couldn't help but think that Ms. Black's last statement felt like the start of something new, something that was probably going to scare her witless.

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><p>Hermione had been teaching the young Scorpius for six months now, and not once had she met the child's father. She thought it was rather irresponsible for a father to abandon his son in such a way, but who was she to judge? In addition to Transfiguration and potions, Scorpius had also shown an interest in the Muggle classics. She had been surprised at first, but she was nonetheless pleased. Scorpius didn't share the views of modern wizarding society and Hermione couldn't have been luckier to have such an eager, sassy but kind student such as him. He could be a little brat at times, sure, but then again, which 13-year-old boy wasn't?<p>

It had taken Hermione quite a while to earn his trust, but in the end, she had managed to do just that. Scorpius Malfoy wasn't someone who trusted easily, and with good reason. You could never be too careful in the world they now lived in.

"But why would Peter Pan kill his own Lost Boys?" Scorpius asked her as he stared at his cup with such a foul scowl on his face that Hermione couldn't help but smile at his frustration.

"Well," Hermione replied, "we aren't sure if he really did kill them. Mr. Barrie writes that Peter 'thins them out' once they get too old or when there were too many of them. That could mean pretty much anything, Scorpius."

"It's such a cruel book. I cannot wait to be grown up and have a house of my own," the lad said decidedly. "I don't ever want to go to Neverland."

Hermione grinned at his childish enthusiasm. "Pray tell, where would you live then? What will you live off?"

Scorpius gave Hermione a cocky grin if she ever saw one. "I don't know if you noticed, Miss, but I am a Malfoy. Money isn't a problem for us."

Hermione laughed delightedly. "Well, young Mr. Malfoy, I'll have you know that neither your last name nor your money will get you out of your Transfiguration assignment. I'm going for a walk and when I return, I want to see you transfigure this cup into a brown field mouse and back again."

She felt like they had made some big strides in Scorpius' schooling in the short time they'd had together, and he most certainly did show promise in Transfiguration. He was struggling with turning a living thing back into an inanimate object, but Hermione was confident that he would get it before the day was over.

He did look a bit nervous though, Hermione noticed.

"If you're able to do this spell properly, I'll lend you my copy of Muggle fairy tales by the Grimm Brothers," she promised.

Hermione then left a determined looking student behind, the promise of strange and forbidden fairy tales urging him on.

She loved walking and exploring the grounds. Malfoy Mansion was a rather isolated house, surrounded by woods with no soul around for miles. Hermione had decided that she liked the fake sense of peace it provided. It was as if the last war hadn't influenced these lands at all. It was a comforting lie at least.

Hermione tried to flatten her insane hair as she crossed one of the property's many bridges. She pulled her jumper closer to her body and cursed her need for fresh air. She had forgotten to bring an actual jacket with her, which wasn't that much of a luxury as it was a necessity in this English autumn weather.

"At least it isn't raining yet," she muttered to herself as she kicked at a heap of leaves.

"You do know, I hope, that talking to oneself is the first sign of madness?" a voice above her remarked.

The first thing Hermione noticed, after she had spun around and looked up, was the typical blond hair she had been told every true Malfoy had. Second, was his face, and there was no doubt in her mind that the handsome wizard on his broom was Scorpius' father. They were so alike in their handsomeness that Hermione was simply stunned as she watched Draco Malfoy descend.

"Hippogriff got your tongue?" He smirked arrogantly.

Hermione bristled at his tone.

"Not at all," she replied sassily as she watched him step closer to her. "I was merely enjoying a decent conversation in my head, you see. I find the company in there rather stimulating."

Unlike the company I have here, she didn't say.

Mr. Malfoy waggled his eyebrows in response. At least Hermione now knew where Scorpius had gotten his mannerisms. from. "Do you wish to tell me why you're on my property, Miss...?"

"Granger, Sir. Pleasure."

Mr. Malfoy switched his broom from his right hand to his left, as he gave her the onceover. When she had apparently earned his approval, he nodded.

"I'm sure it's bound to be, Miss Granger." He turned around to leave again and mounted his broom. "I would suggest you return to the Manor. It looks like it will be dark soon."

Without a single backward glance, he pushed himself off the ground and away he flew.

It wasn't until she started making her way back to the house that she realised how odd it was for him to travel by broom without any bags and with such a stylish suit to boot. That couldn't possibly be comfortable on a broomstick, right?

"Curiouser and curiouser," she quoted her favourite book in a murmur.


	2. Gratitude

__**A/N: My name, unfortunately, is not J.K. Rowling nor is it Charlotte Brontë. All characters belong to their rightful authors.**__

__Hiya,__

__Thank you all so much for the favourites, the follows and of course the reviews! I really love hearing your thoughts on this one, especially since I was so unsure about this short story going in!__

__Without further ado, here's the second chapter. I hope you'll enjoy reading and if you do, please let me know what you think!__

__Love,__

__Kelly__

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><p><strong>Chapter Two: Gratitude<strong>

As soon as Hermione arrived back at the mansion, she was ushered into a room she had never been allowed in before. Ms. Black had prohibited anyone from entering Mr. Malfoy's rooms and that included his study. It was rather unfortunate, Hermione thought as she gazed around the room that had floor to ceiling bookcases, because she could have spend many an hour here trying to pick even one of them to read.

The room was sober and painted in colors of white and green that she had to say she liked. She had never really been fond of green because it was the colour Lord Voldemort most praised, but in this study and in this environment she almost found it charming.

She shook her head and tried to keep the disgust for herself from rising. Green was a hateful colour, she told herself. Purebloods at the Ministry wore it. Well, in all honesty, Purebloods _everywhere_ wore it.

"Welcome, Miss Granger," Mr. Malfoy said to Ms. Black's surprise.

"You've already met?" the latter said as she looked from Hermione to Mr. Malfoy and back again.

He smirked arrogantly, and Hermione balled her fists in response. "Oh, we had a most stimulating conversation, did we not, Miss Granger?"

"Quite," Hermione replied in such a tone that implied exactly the opposite.

Ms. Black gave her a look that told her she wasn't at all pleased with that kind of tone but left it at that. "Well then, would you like a cup of tea, dear?"

Hermione's tone warmed considerably. "Yes, please."

"Take a seat," Mr. Malfoy said as he grabbed hold of a pile of papers and shuffled through them.

Hermione cleared her throat and did as she was told. She licked her lips uncomfortably and gave Ms. Black a kind smile when she gave Hermione her tea.

"I have been given a short demonstration of Scorpius's magical abilities and he is much improved. You have done well with him."

"Thank you," Hermione smiled, happy with the words of praise.

Mr. Malfoy nodded and finally looked up from his papers.

His eyes felt like a trap, Hermione thought. She had never felt as isolated as she did under his stern gaze right then. Hermione was ready to make a move for her wand, sure that Mr. Malfoy had some issue with her or her heritage. She was going to die if she didn't move, she realized.

And then, all of a sudden, the tension in the room lifted and Mr. Malfoy gave her a brilliant smile that dazzled her senses. How was he able to play her emotions like that, she wondered as she shook her head to clear it. She had to keep her wits about her, damn it. This was her first real conversation with her employer and she needed to show him that she was more than capable for this job. She needed this job since the Headmistress had made it more than clear that she was no longer welcome at her old school.

"I am pleased that you feel that way, sir. Scorpius is a very bright boy indeed, although we will have to work on his Charms some more."

Mr. Malfoy nodded as if he had noticed all of that himself as well, but how could that be? He was here for no longer than a few hours?

"I'm more than capable of teaching him those skills, Mr. Malfoy, if that's what you're worried about," Hermione soldiered on. "I graduated top of my year and-"

"Enough, Miss Granger," Mr. Malfoy said with a raised eyebrow. "Did I ever give you any indication that I doubted your capability to tutor my son? I assure you, Miss Granger, if I had any doubts about your intellect or skill you would not be sitting here right now."

Hermione nodded slowly. "What about my blood status?"

"What about it?" Mr. Malfoy said promptly with a scowl. "Do you find issue with working for a Pureblood family?"

Hermione blinked at his vehemence. She hadn't expected that, nor had she meant to offend. "Not in the slightest, sir, I was wondering if you find issue with a Muggleborn for an employee?"

"As long as you don't rub off any cooties," he quipped.

Ms. Black gasped, and Hermione stared at him, feeling quite offended indeed until Mr. Malfoy cracked a smile that didn't feel true.

"Once upon a time, perhaps," he finally offered, and his eyes fell back down on his sheet of parchment in front of him.

Hermione frowned and exchanged a look with the housekeeper. "Once upon a time, sir?"

"People change, Miss Granger. Youngsters are often easily misguided by their parents, and that's all I will have to say on the matter. Now, are there any questions you have for me?"

She wanted to ask what had happened to his wife since everyone in the house was quite vague on the matter. She went away and wasn't here, but if Hermione asked them if she was dead, Ms. Black had shrugged with a sad look in her eyes. There was no doubt in her mind that Mrs. Malfoy had died a gruesome dead, but Hermione wouldn't be Hermione if she didn't want to know how and why.

But, then again, in this world Muggles died by the dozens every month, and people with impure blood still died daily. She had heard rumours of an underground army battling the system, and although she found that idea quite romantic, she doubted it was real. A children's tale people told one another to give hope to the naive and old people who still talked about the good old days.

Hermione had been told that it used to be much worse and that things had calmed down considerably in the last ten years. She shuddered to imagine what things must have been like before if this was considered a calm period.

"Fair enough," she finally spoke. Just as she opened her mouth to embarrass herself and ask about Mrs. Malfoy, a loud knock sounded.

Mr. Malfoy gave a deep sigh. "Come in, Scorpius."

Hermione didn't ask how he knew because the look of admiration on Scorpius's face told her enough. She could imagine Scorpius spending every free moment he could with his father just to be near him.

"Evening, Father," Scorpius said with a small skip in his step that disappeared when a stern look from Mr. Malfoy was cast his way.

"Good evening," Mr. Malfoy replied briskly.

Scorpius promptly turned to her and then turned Hermione's cup into a brown mouse, making Ms. Black screech. With a swift swish of his wand, the mouse turned into the cup again, and Hermione nodded her approval.

"Very well, Scorpius," she praised him, "although I had wished you had waited to perform your spell until I had at least finished my tea."

Under her reprimanding look, Scorpius gave her one of his "puppy dog smiles" as Hermione had dubbed them in her mind. He only turned the charm up a notch if he had done something wrong.

She narrowed her eyes at him until he stopped with the cheeky smile and then gave a sober nod.

"I apologize, miss. It wasn't thoughtful of me."

"No, it wasn't," Hermione agreed sternly. "Apology accepted."

Scorpius perked up immediately. "Does that mean you'll lend me your copy of the Muggle fairy tales?"

Hermione glanced briefly at Mr. Malfoy, who seemed quite surprised by the news, to Ms. Black, who looked rather nonplussed. She turned back to Scorpius and nodded. "Very well. You've earned it."

"You've been reading my son Muggle fairy tales?" Mr. Malfoy asked, an incredulous tone to his voice.

"Actually, Father, I've been able to read on my own for a few years now," Scorpius pointed out and Hermione tried to smother the laugh that threatened to escape her.

Mr. Malfoy's eyes turned ice cold, and even Hermione felt quite chastised for wanting to laugh. "Tone it down, Scorpius."

"Sorry, Father," Scorpius said, taking a step back.

Mr. Malfoy gave a deep sigh and closed his eyes. Hermione thought he looked pained, as if he had a headache or something of the like.

"So you've been reading Muggle stories?" Mr. Malfoy finally asked again.

Scorpius nodded, not that eager this time. "It's not Miss Granger's fault," he started, but Hermione cut him off.

She couldn't bear seeing this clever boy grovel at his father's feet like that. It was horrifying and she wasn't going to stand for it.

"Actually it is. I allowed him to read them because he showed an interest in Muggle culture. So far he has read _Alice In Wonderland_ and _Peter Pan_."

"You thought it appropriate for him to read these," Mr. Malfoy hesitated, "stories?"

"Indeed I did," Hermione said defiantly, meeting his stare levelly this time. She refused to be intimidated anymore. He was just one wizard after all, and Hermione figured that she'd be able to take him if it ever came to that. She still hoped not, because she had grown rather fond of the boy and the job in general.

Finally, he broke the eye contact and gave his son a firm nod. "Very well then. Don't let it interfere with your regular schoolwork though."

Scorpius glowed. "I won't. I promise."

His father nodded. "Off to bed with you then. We'll talk further in the morning."

Ms. Black stood up and guided Scorpius to the door.

Hermione followed her example and gave her tea doubtful look.

"I wouldn't drink it either," Mr. Malfoy offered unexpectedly, surprising Hermione once more.

This man was so confusing, she thought. He was cocky one moment and a stern father the next. Was he bipolar? Hermione wondered. She didn't touch her tea though and gave Mr. Malfoy a nod. "Goodnight then, sir."

Mr. Malfoy stood up and followed her to the door. He only spoke up when she was about to leave the room. "Miss Granger." She turned around and gasped at how close he suddenly was. They were mere inches apart. She swallowed and looked up as Mr. Malfoy looked down. She saw his eyes rest on her lips and she could almost feel his lips on her own. The thought of kissing, made her flush a bright red. She thought that his kiss would be raw and demanding. That he would be the one taking initiative and that he'd pull her against his body.

"Thank you," Mr. Malfoy breathed, forcing her eyes back up to his. He abruptly turned around and walked back to his desk as Hermione left the study room. She couldn't believe what had almost happened just now and how unprofessional she had behaved. It was absolutely unacceptable.

Her fingers gingerly touched her lips as if the kiss she had fantasized about had actually happened. His moods were so fickle that Hermione couldn't help but firmly believe that he must be bipolar. But it would be a bipolarity she could get used to, she thought with a faint smile.

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><p>Hermione woke to a chilling laugh that nearly stopped her heart. She waited for a breathless second as she heard a strange knocking sound. She jumped out of bed, grabbing at her wand as she did so. Wand at the ready, she whispered a soft "lumos". As her eyes adjusted to the brightness, she noticed the open window that kept banging shut with a loud thud. She hurried over and closed it.<p>

She leaned against her bed frame for a second as she tried to calm her erratically beating heart. That was when she heard that horrifying laugh again. She rubbed her arms and tried to will the goosebumps away. She tiptoed to her door and unlocked it. Hermione was notorious at her old school for her curiosity. She always got in all kinds of trouble and it looked like she couldn't stop herself even now, years later. All seemed quiet in the empty corridor though and Hermione started wondering if she hadn't dreamt the bone chilling laugh.

She decided to check on Scorpius, who she found fast asleep in his own bed. She was just about to head back to her own room, muttering about her and her wild fantasy, when she noticed smoke coming through one of the doors further down the hall. Her feet carried her to the door and down the hall it led her to in a record time. She coughed several times as the smoke pushed its way inside her lungs. She blindly ran to the door at the end of the corridor and threw it open.

These were Mr. Malfoy's rooms, she knew. Her head turned to the bed and a loud gasp escaped her, which made her cough even more. The bed frame was on fire! She ran to his bed and pointed her wand at the flames, licking the bed frame and curtains.

"Mr. Malfoy," she screamed as she tried to shake him awake. "Mr. Malfoy, please!"

She stopped her futile attempts when she saw the empty bottle of firewhiskey next to his bed. She looked around desperately until she found a bucket next to his bed that was probably there for the morning hangover.

"Aguamenti," she yelled and the bucket filled itself with water. With a loud cough, she emptied the bucket on Mr. Malfoy's head with a little satisfaction.

Mr. Malfoy woke up with a gasp. "Miss Granger," he sputtered.

"Get up, Draco," Hermione shouted, forgetting all rules of propriety in the heat of the moment. She waited until he had jumped out of bed and told him to close his eyes. Hermione pointed her wand to the bed and used one of her own spells. Water flooded the room for a second before it disappeared as fast as it had come. The room looked like it had drowned, but the flames that had even started on the window curtains were extinguished completely.

A soaked Hermione looked at a shocked Draco Malfoy. She hadn't been able to use the spell before in fear of drowning him, and she regretted the damage that surrounded them because of it. She shivered as their eyes met. She couldn't tell if the shiver was the result of the excitement and the ice cold water that had enveloped her only seconds before or his piercing grey eyes.

"You must be freezing," he finally said after a little while. He hurried to his closet and used a drying charm to dry the bigger part of the room. Hermione followed his example, and before long they had a dry room once more.

Draco, Hermione couldn't think of him as Mr. Malfoy anymore for some reason, guided her to one of his fauteuils and laid one of his jumpers over her shoulders. Hermione grabbed it, only now remembering that she was in his rooms in nothing more than her night clothes and pulled it on.

"Don't go anywhere," he breathed as he knelt before her. "I'll be right back."

Hermione managed a single nod before he stood up and stalked out of his room. After a few seconds, she could hear him shout for Andromeda. So her suspicions were correct. Ms. Black was indeed Andromeda Tonks. Curious that she had found her refuge with Draco Malfoy, Hermione thought.

Hermione waited and waited until the minutes became hours and the night became day. When Draco finally did stumble back into his room, he seemed almost surprised to see her still there.

"You're here," he said as he walked over to her and fell down in the fauteuil next to hers. "Miss Granger, it's imperative that you do not tell anyone of what happened here today. Especially not the servants."

She frowned at that. "What about Ms. Black? Will she be punished?"

"Andromeda?" Draco seemed honestly surprised. So it hadn't been her, Hermione mused. Then who? "No, why would I? She has been warned and she will relay my warning to the appropriate people," he assured me. "Something like this will never happen again."

Hermione nodded unsurely. She didn't believe a word of it. Who had started the fire? Who laughed like that in the middle of the night? And why hadn't she heard that sound before tonight? Did it have something to do with Draco himself? After all, he only returned today, and tonight an unknown person had tried to kill him in his sleep. There must be something to connect the dots, right?

Draco got up again and held out his hand for Hermione, which she took. He helped her up and stared at her rather intently. He didn't let go of her hand as he kissed her forehead. "Go back to bed, Hermione Granger. There's still several hours of sleep waiting for you."

He then let her go and turned his back to her, an obvious dismissal.

Hermione left his jumper behind as she went back to her own room, her mind spinning with the kiss he had just given her. Did that mean he felt the same way she did? Was he as taken by surprise by these sudden intense feelings like she was? What had happened tonight? Who was behind the mad laugh? And why had Draco kissed her just now?


	3. Not Dissatisfied

__**A/N: My name, unfortunately, is not J.K. Rowling nor is it Charlotte Brontë. All characters belong to their rightful authors.**__

__Hiya,__

_People who are as familiar (aka obsessed) with Jane Eyre as I am, probably know what's coming next. I, obviously, skipped a few parts and scenes, but I couldn't NOT write this certain part. It was too hilarious to skip._

_Anyway, thank you all so much for reading and I hope that this chapter will not dissatisfy you. -cackles- Oh, I'm horrible. I need a new sense of humour. (You'll get my bad joke after this chapter, I promise.)_

_Love,_

__Kelly__

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><p><strong>Chapter Three: Not Dissatisfied<strong>

After that fateful night, Draco disappeared once more. It took several months for him to return to the Manor again. Summer had come, and one morning Andromeda, for Hermione and Ms. Black had grown quite close over time, was absolutely obsessing over several flower arrangements.

The House Elves, the Malfoys had three in total, had reported for duty early that morning and were told to start cooking all of Draco's favourite meals.

"He never brings company back home," Andromeda said breathlessly as she delivered flowers to ten guest rooms in total. The guest rooms were situated on the other side of the manor from theirs, and Andromeda wasn't happy about this either. "This part of the house is no good," she kept muttering to herself as she worked.

Hermione still hadn't figured out what had happened several months before, and it were comments like these that piqued her interest even more. It wasn't for lack of trying either. She found herself waiting for that horrifying laugh at night, but it never came again. She had tried to ask about Mrs. Malfoy because Hermione suspected it was her ghost that haunted this place, but nobody would give her a straight answer.

She watched as Andromeda's beautiful hairdo became more undone by the minute and asked again if she could be of any assistance. She just waved Hermione away. "Take Scorpius somewhere and let us work in peace, dear. Katherine," she shouted then at the young maid who had just entered the Blue Room, a guest room with blue tapestries covering the walls. "Not that one. Tell Ermy that he needs to clean out the stables."

"It's a House Elf," Katherine muttered, "tell him yourself." Despite her words, she did hurry down to the kitchens to fulfill her task.

Andromeda scowled at Hermione and she took that as her cue to leave. That's how she found herself teaching some Defense spells to Scorpius when the party arrived.

Scorpius scowled at one lady in particular. "He brought Miss Parkinson with him."

"Oh?" she said, trying to sound disinterested as she glanced outside herself.

"Yes, Pansy," Scorpius spat out her name with such vehemence that it surprised her, "is my dad's special lady."

"Oh," she said again, not able to keep the disappointed tone out of her voice. She coughed. "That's enough, Scorpius. Back to your schoolwork."

He grumbled some but did as Hermione asked while she studied Pansy Parkinson. She looked like a sour person to Hermione. She had dark hair and fair skin and a face like a pug. Yes, Hermione thought rather spitefully, she definitely had a face like a pug. That thought made her feel a little better as she finally closed the window. Hermione didn't know that as she had been glaring hatefully at Miss Parkinson, Draco had been looking up at her with a satisfied smile.

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><p>With a nervous sigh, Hermione tried to flatten her hair once more. Why was her hair always this unmanageable? Why must she always look like she just rolled out of bed? She took a another deep breath and then knocked on the white oaken door.<p>

"Enter," his voice called from inside.

Hermione entered Draco's study with her head held high.

"Good afternoon, sir," she said with a faint smile.

"Good afternoon, Hermione. May I call you Hermione?"

She gave a nod since she had decided she quite liked the way her name rolled off his tongue. As if he was uttering some kind of prayer.

"Very well, Hermione," he said, stressing her name with an amused twinkle in his eyes. "How have you been?"

Hermione sat down in one of the chairs he waved her to, and she gave him a broad smile. Fake it till you make it, had always been her motto. There was no way in hell she was going to show how nervous all of this made her. "I have been well, sir, thank you."

"You didn't look too pleased this morning though," he pointed out.

Hermione hesitated. "Sir?"

"Never mind," Draco grinned. "How do you feel then about our current company?"

"It is your house," Hermione answered diplomatically. "It's your right to invite whomever you choose."

Draco laughed at that. "It most certainly is. Scorpius tells me you have been filling his head with nonsense stories about princesses? I wasn't aware that a Sleeping Draught could be undone by something called True Love's Kiss."

Hermione balled her fists. "Are you mocking me?"

"Only your Muggle fairy tales," Draco answered with a smirk.

"I'll have you know," Hermione said angrily, "that those stories were a big part of my childhood before my parents died, so if you have nothing nice to say about them, I'd rather you said nothing at all."

Draco cocked his head to the side as he smiled amusedly at her. The mirth in his eyes that she had found charming only moments before, now made her blood boil. "It's not that I don't have anything nice to say about them, Hermione Granger, it's more that I have never read a Muggle fairy tale. The concept of True Love's Kiss, as I understand it, conquering evil seems rather curious, doesn't it?"

Hermione stared at him dumbfounded. She considered herself a bright witch on most days, but even she had some difficulty trying to keep up with Draco Malfoy's thought process.

"Do you believe that it solves all one's troubles?" he asked her, his eyes burning a hole in her soul. "True Love's Kiss, I mean."

Hermione felt a blush rise and cleared her throat. Just what had Scorpius told his father about these fairy tales? "Why? Do you have a test subject in mind?"

He laughed merrily. "Maybe, yes. You must have noticed that my heart is rather occupied these days." Hermione barely kept her bitter smile to herself right then and there. That bloody Miss Parkinson, she thought angrily. "I wish to propose a trade. One of your fairy tale books for any one of mine." He gestured wildly around the room and Hermione's heart stopped for a second.

It was true that she had been lusting after the books in this room and that her hands had been itching to get hold of one, but she still wasn't sure if he was mocking her or not. So much for being a bright witch, she thought. "I'd get to choose any book of my liking?"

Draco nodded, folding his hands and letting his chin rest on them. The movement fascinated Hermione so much that she got distracted for a moment before the thought of new books drew her back to the topic at hand. No matter how beautiful Draco Malfoy's grey eyes were and no matter how much she adored them, books had always been and will always be her one true love.

"Then yes, I would love to exchange books with you."

"Wicked," Draco Malfoy said with such a boyish smile that Hermione couldn't help but smile back at. "I also have another request of you. It's my wish that you and Scorpius join me and my other guests at our evening gatherings."

Hermione stared at him. It's his wish? "But-"

"No, 'buts', Miss Granger." So she was Miss Granger again, was she? Hermione thought annoyedly. He made her emotions go up and down like a yoyo and she wasn't pleased with the influence he had on her. "You are in my employ, are you not?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, but didn't contradict him. She was in his employ and she very much desired to remain there. "How late will we be expected?"

"Eight," he answered promptly. "Feel free to pick any book on your way out, Hermione."

And that's how she ended up with _Hogwarts: A History_, a book that had been banned from her own school's library but that she had wanted to read for a while now. She let Emy, one of the House Elves, deliver a storybook to his study not half an hour later. She was nothing if not true to her word.

* * *

><p>"I don't understand why he wants me there," Hermione moaned just like she had the day before.<p>

She had gone to the previous gathering with Scorpius last night, but as soon as the others had started bitching about Mudbloods being a disgrace and giving her questioning looks when she didn't join in, she had disappeared to her room. Draco had, to her surprise, followed her out and told her that he insisted she attend every party he threw for the next few weeks. She had had half a mind to tell him what he could do with his 'wish', but had decided against it in the end. She was in his employ after all as he had kindly reminded her that day.

Hermione didn't have anything fancy to wear, so she would have to go down and meet the wizarding elite in her plain, black robes. Again.

"He didn't say, dear. Just go and make sure that Scorpius is wearing his best dressing robes, yes? Mr. Malfoy likes to show him off and Scorpius does well with the ladies." Andromeda sounded positively excited when she continued. "Maybe Scorpius will be the reason Mr. Malfoy finally settles down again. He has never brought Miss Parkinson home. Oh, yes. I believe he's going to propose to her soon."

Hermione felt like she had swallowed something sour as she walked to the party downstairs with a grumbling Scorpius in tow.

"I don't want to go," he muttered stubbornly.

"Neither do I," Hermione finally snapped, having no patience at all tonight. She had a lot on her mind but when she saw Scorpius' face fall even more, she started feeling bad for losing her cool. They stopped walking, and she turned around, kneeling in front of Scorpius. She adjusted his bow tie so it sat straight again.

"You're a Malfoy," Hermione reminded him. "It's your duty to attend these social gatherings. One day you will be the one throwing them after all. Smile and do your condescending glare every now and then and I'm sure they will love you."

"Whatever," Scorpius grumbled but before he turned Hermione could see a faint smile on his face.

Mission accomplished. Hermione stood up again and continued with a frightened heart. As the night progressed, Hermione mostly kept to herself. She found the company to be extremely condescending and just, well, plain mean. Definitely not her kind of crowd, and she was quite sure that if any of them found out she was Muggleborn she wouldn't live to see the morning.

Just what kind of company did Draco Malfoy keep? Just as she was ready to take her leave again, despite his warnings, another guest had arrived.

Draco clapped his hands excitedly. "I've found a seer for some entertainment tonight!"

Miss Parkinson's cry of delight made Hermione cringe. "Oh, I can't wait what kind of riches await me!" She gave Draco a covet look, which he missed.

"Alright. We'll be in the library and I suggest you come by one by one." And so they did. Hermione waited for about two hours before she just couldn't take Parkinson's high pitched squeal anymore. She had just stated that she didn't want any children and had given Scorpius an annoyed look.

"That's what Hogwarts is for after all," she had cooed as she squeezed his cheek.

Scorpius had slapped her hand away and hexed her legs to keep dancing until she dropped. Someone had after a few amused moments removed the hex, and Hermione, being a tough and stern teacher, had to send Scorpius to his room for his behaviour.

She made a mental note to buy Scorpius any Muggle book he wanted as a reward.

Hermione waited for several more minutes before she thought it a safe time to leave. She had just reached the corridor when a low female voice called out to her.

"What about you, young lady? Would you like to see your future?"

Hermione slowly turned around as she eyed the seer skeptically. "I don't believe in Divination," she stated firmly. Her Divination teacher had told her that her soul was as dry as the papers she so desperately clung to. Let's just say that Hermione didn't have any good memories to associate with Divination. At all.

"Oh come on now, sweetheart. What is it that you fear?"

Hermione hesitated before she nodded. Ah, why not? She ought to give it a try at least, right? She entered the side room and was ushered to a chair in front of the fire.

A crystal ball was standing on a small table in front of them and the seer, a black-haired girl with brown eyes, gave her a happy smile. Her freckles seemed to dance on the rhythm of the shadows the flames cast on her face. It was eerie.

"How do we do this?" Hermione finally asked.

"You do not seem excited," the seer remarked.

"Should I be?" Hermione retorted.

"Cheeky," the seer tutted.

"I am not cheeky," Hermione stated, balling her fists in contempt.

The seer chuckled behind a curtain of her silky black hair. "Mr. Malfoy looked quite excited to entertain his guests, did he not?"

Hermione looked around the room, only then realizing that Draco had said he would be in the room with them too. "He didn't look excited to me." And he hadn't, he had looked almost as annoyed as Scorpius had the last few days with the whole thing.

"Then what did you see in his face? Did you see love?"

Hermione snorted. "It seems that your seer's skill is quite at fault."

The seer smiled at that. "But you have been watching him then."

Hermione frowned and decided to ignore that and just ask her a few questions. She laid a few knuts on the table. "So he is to be married then?"

"People would say that he is to marry Miss Parkinson."

He would be a fool if he did so, Hermione thought, and she wouldn't stay another day if that were to happen.

"You don't seem happy." The seer's eyes were almost burning a hole into Hermione's, and she felt most uncomfortable in this situation indeed.

"I'm not dissatisfied," Hermione lied.

"Not happy either," the seer pointed out.

She cleared her throat. "But, Madam, I came to hear my fortune. Not Mr. Malfoy's."

"Indeed you did," the seer laughed. She turned to look at the ball when she seemed to get weird cramps. She shrugged and muttered a 'Merlin' every now and then.

Hermione watched horrified as the seer took a different form in front of her eyes. Her mouth was wide agape when she saw Draco Malfoy sitting beside her in a green dress.

"You never get used to that," he muttered as he rolled his shoulders back.

The view was so ridiculous that she would have laughed at any other time, but the only thing she could do right now was take her knuts and throw them at him one by one.

"You complete arse, Draco Malfoy," she shouted.

Draco started laughing as he tried to dodge the coins, which was an impossible feat, but he got some bonus points for trying.

"Oh come on, Hermione," he said, "that was funny. Some things people asked..."

"It wasn't funny! Oh, Merlin," Hermione shouted as a blush crept onto her face.

Draco noticed and started smirking amusedly. "Aw, Miss Granger, don't be shy all of a sudden. It would make me quite _dissatisfied_," Draco teased.

Hermione didn't know what to do. Hex him or run from the room screaming. "You are such an arse," she said in the end.

Draco laughed. "You do realize that no one has spoken to me like that except for my dearest friends for years, right?"

Hermione cleared her throat. "You are such an arse, _sir_."

He hollered with laughter. "Oh, Hermione Granger, you strange, wonderful witch. I have a question for you, and I hope that your answer will not be _dissatisfying._"

"By Merlin's underwear," Hermione shouted, only faintly realizing she was screaming like a banshee at her employer. Oh well, in for a knut, in for a galleon. "Will you bloody well stop?"

Draco waggled his eyebrows at her, which wasn't as impressive as it was in his usual attire. The dress really was ridiculous.

"I adore this side of you," he announced suddenly, making Hermione stop in her motions to throw another object at his head. She put the crystal ball back down again and stared at him, mouth agape. He what?

"Hermione Granger, you are strange and baffling to me on most days. You are also wonderful, extremely witty and you have a hidden fire in you that I want my soul to set ablaze. Will you be my wife?"

Hermione stared at him in shock. She had been crushing on him for months now, yes, and they had shared some stolen minutes together. All they had ever done though was talk and, now he wanted to marry?

"But- But-" she stuttered and was ready to hit herself. Hermione Granger did not stutter! "What about Pansy Parkinson then?"

Draco rolled his eyes at that with a familiar scowl that she had come to love. "Damn Pansy Parkinson to Morgana and back again!"

"But, sir-"

"Draco, please."

Hermione took a deep breath. "But Draco-" she started again but was stopped when his lips came crashing down on hers. Every cliché Hermione had ever read seemed to be true; the world had stopped spinning, angels had started singing hallelujah, and her stomach made bizarre jumps and turns in her body. Her eyes fell shut, and her hands shot up into his hair as Draco pulled her body to his.

"Say yes, Hermione," he breathed against her lips when he pulled back a little.

Her mind was jumping to all kinds of conclusions, and she couldn't stop analyzing the situation.

"Are you serious about this? This isn't some prank you are willing to pull on the poor Muggleborn? Again?"

Because he was still dressed in the dress he had used in the last prank he pulled on her.

"Do you trust me, Hermione?"

"Not even a little bit."

"Do you think I'm a liar?" Probably. "Do my eyes lie when I tell you that I love you? That I am serious, and that I want you to be mine?"

Hermione held her breath as she looked deep into his eyes. A chill ran down her spine, and her skin tingled all over. She closed her eyes and let her forehead rest against his. "Then yes, Draco Malfoy, I'll be your wife."

Draco laughed and picked her up from the ground to spin her around. "Well then, wife," he said when he put her down again. "Will this make you happy then at least?"

Hermione laughed at that as she escaped his arms to look him and his green dress up and down. "I'm not dissatisfied," she laughed.


	4. A Fool

__**A/N: My name, unfortunately, is not J.K. Rowling nor is it Charlotte Brontë. All characters belong to their rightful authors.**__

__Hiya,__

_Thank you so much for your reviews! This one has a lot of drama and very little Draco, but oh well. I hope you'll enjoy it either way! _

_Let me know what you think?_

_Love,_

__Kelly__

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Four: A Fool<strong>

Hermione Granger had been a fool, she thought as she stood in her fancy wedding robes staring at the ragged witch who had once been beautiful and graceful. Now, she was only hissing profanities at Hermione.

Hermione closed her eyes and prayed that her tears wouldn't fall for everyone to see.

The last few weeks had been heaven to her. Draco had made sure that she felt accepted and loved and had served on her every need. They had read books together, Muggle and wizard books alike, they had laughed and shared stolen kisses in dark corners of the mansion's corridor. Hermione had never been happier, and that happiness had crashed and burned when a stranger interrupted their wedding ceremony and had stated that the wedding couldn't continue.

_Because Mr. Malfoy was still wed. _

She had been such a fool, Hermione thought as she turned away from the screeching woman and a yelling Draco. He had been screaming to the attendees of their wedding that he hadn't deserved a mentally unstable wife. That he had been done wrong in so many ways.

Hermione couldn't stomach it. If anyone had been done wrong, it had been her, but then again, she had been a fool to think that an orphaned Muggleborn like her could have been this lucky in a sick world like this.

She reached her room in tears and tore her wedding dress right off her body. She didn't care if the fabric was ruined, she was never putting that thing on again anyway. She grabbed her wand, and with a quick spell, her clothing started packing itself into her trunk again.

She fell down on the ground and cried in her hands for a few seconds, allowing herself to feel sorry for herself as she did so. She also felt sorry for the poor wretch that used to be Astoria Malfoy. Neither of them had deserved this fate, Hermione decided as she slowly picked herself up from the ground.

She needed to get out of there fast. She grabbed the trunk that had packed itself and gave her room, that was about three time as large as her old bedroom at school, a sad look before she closed the door behind her. She didn't have to say goodbye to Scorpius since they had sent him to Hogwarts for their honeymoon. They had wanted to leave immediately afterward, so Scorpius had left for Hogwarts last Sunday.

Hermione had initially disagreed, but Draco had insisted that, despite its views on many things, Hogwarts was still a magical place of learning. According to her ex-fiancé, Scorpius' education wouldn't suffer there. On the contrary. Since she had always valued a good education, she shut up and agreed. How foolish she had been. Scorpius had been happy that Hermione would become a permanent part of the Malfoy family, but Draco had probably sent his own son away before he could protest or remember that his mum was still rotting away in the attic. Or didn't Scorpius know that his mother was still alive?

Yes, it had been Astoria Malfoy who had tried to set fire to Draco as he slept, and Hermione couldn't say she blamed her.

She hurried down the stairs, her trunk hitting each step loudly behind her. She made it to the gardens before someone grabbed her arm.

"Please don't go," Draco begged. "I can explain."

"You have," Hermione snapped, shrugging his hand off. "You treat that poor woman like an animal by keeping her locked up like that! How dare you deny her proper health care? Are you that possessed by what people might think of you?"

"If I thought that," Draco snarled back fiercely, "I wouldn't want to marry you!"

Hermione gasped, recoiling from him even more as tears filled her eyes.

"That's not what I meant," Draco said as he paled. "Hermione-"

She raised her wand. "Avis," she whispered, conjuring a flock of canaries that flew around her head.

"Hermione," Draco pleaded again, shaking his head. He looked so heartbroken, Hermione thought as a tear ran down her cheek. Such a good actor he was. "I don't care about any of that. You know that."

"People don't really change, Draco," Hermione said, remembering his words from a few months ago. She said it to hurt him like he had hurt her, but no words could cause that kind of pain. A flock of birds could though, she thought.

"Oppugno," she whispered tearfully before she disapparated.

* * *

><p>"Give her some air, Ron," a voice snapped. "For Merlin's sake, why are you smothering her so?"<p>

"She's rather beautiful, don't you think, Ginny?" a male voice answered.

Someone laughed in the background.

"Oh shut up, Harry."

Hermione opened her eyes and quickly shut them again. By Morgana's arse, even breathing hurt. What had happened to her and where was she? Who the bloody hell were these people and why wasn't Draco there?

That was when she remembered and she opened her eyes again with a sob.

"Oh no, does it hurt? We can give you another potion," a familiar voice asked her.

"Draco?" she croaked, staring at the silhouette hovering over her dumbfoundedly. It was most definitely him, she thought. Her hand moved of its own account and slapped him across the face. "I told you to leave me alone!"

He grabbed his left cheek and stared at her wide-eyed. "Merlin," he exclaimed in a feminine voice that didn't match the one he had used before at all. This one was higher and there was something about the way he had said Merlin...

"Oh dear," Hermione said, blinking several times. The silhouette she had just slapped, belonged to a girl with fiery red hair. "You're not Draco, are you?"

"That's my sister you're smacking, you daft witch!" a voice hollered before another redhead entered her vision.

"Don't, Ron," the girl said pulling him away from Hermione.

Hermione tried to crawl back a little on the bed but she stopped trying with a painful cry. "Why can't I move my legs?"

"You splinched them," the girl said as she glared at Hermione. "I'm going to pretend that you're still a bit feverish, but if you lay a hand on me again-"

"It's quite alright, Ginny. She thought you were Malfoy."

At last, Hermione's eyes went to the last of their company; a black-haired boy with green eyes. "You know him?"

"Despise him is more like it," the redheaded boy grumbled. "I'm Ron Weasley."

"Ginny," the girl introduced herself before nodding her head to the black-haired boy Hermione had been studying. "And that's my boyfriend, Harry, so he's off limits."

Her boyfriend, Harry, seemed rather uncomfortable by that statement.

Hermione cleared her throat. "I apologize. I meant no offense. My name's Hermione Granger."

Ron stared at her before he raised an eyebrow. "Bloody hell. You're not one of those Purebloods, are you?"

Ginny rolled her eyes at her brother. "You're a Pureblood yourself, you dimwit."

Ron threw a pillow at her head. "You know what I meant. One of those fancy talking, Muggleborn hating twats. She must be! She's looking for Draco Malfoy, after all."

Hermione scowled. "I thought I was hitting him just now, wasn't I?"

"She has a point, mate," Harry said cheerfully from the other side of the room.

It was Ginny, studying her intently, who asked the question Hermione had been dreading. "What did he do to you to earn that kind of reaction? I thought you were going to kill me with that kind of anger in your eyes."

Hermione felt herself tear up again and shook her head. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"That's your right, I suppose," Ginny slowly allowed. "Alright, boys, let's go. I'm sure Hermione, was it?" Hermione nodded, a bit nonplussed that she was put on first name basis with all of them from the get go. "I'm sure that Hermione would like to rest instead of listening to your nonsense, Ron."

"I'm not talking nonsense, Ginny. And besides, you're one to talk. You're dating my best friend, remember?"

Ginny rolled her eyes at Hermione as she stood up and pushed the two lads out of the door. "What does that even have to do with this?"

"It means that I knew Harry first, and that he'll take my side, right?"

"Eerh," Hermione heard Harry mutter confusedly, and she felt a little bad for him. They seemed like a mad bunch, that was for sure.

"Feel better soon," Ginny told Hermione when she reached the door. "Feel free to holler if you need anything."

Hermione gave her a kind smile, her eyes already on her wand on the nightstand next to her. As soon as the door closed, she threw the covers off of her and stared at her legs. They were in pretty bad shape, she had to admit, and she detected some faint traces of some healing potions, but it was obvious that even though the threesome had tried to help her, they were out of their league. Hermione sighed and accio'd her purse, hoping that it was somewhere near. When it arrived, she took a vial out of it and put the pillow she had been resting on only moments before, between her teeth. She started applying some essence of dittany on her wounds and tried to think the pain away. Merlin, she thought, she was never disapparating or apparating when upset ever again.

* * *

><p>It had taken Hermione several days to come down, but when she did, she found out that fairy tales apparently did exist. She had landed her butt in the middle of the resistance, or the Order of the Phoenix as they called themselves.<p>

"We are the force that's going to throw Voldemort right off his throne," Harry Potter had told her with a smirk. "We'll succeed, alright."

"Yeah," his best friend, Ron Weasley, had said as he clapped his friend on the back. "He's the Chosen One after all."

"There's no such thing," Hermione had laughed uneasily. "Those are just stories we tell little children to help them sleep at night."

Harry had given her a kind smile. "I assure you," he said as he pinched his arm. "I am very real."

Hermione had no clue what she was going to do with this kind of information. Her insides screamed at her to join their fight, that she had to do something to end Voldemort's reign of tyranny. The Order had checked her background as soon as she had told them her full name and since she had, apparently, "checked out" as Arthur, Ron's father, had called it, she was more than welcome to join them.

"So how do you know Draco then?"

Ron rolled his eyes as he took another bite from his sandwich. They were at Grimmauld Place, she had been told. It had previously belonged to Harry's godfather, but after he died a few years ago, Harry had inherited everything the man had owned.

"He's kind of our undercover agent, but he's such an arse."

Luna, whom Hermione had immediately taken a liking to for the girl was nothing if not a tad bit mad in a cool kind of way, nodded at that. "His head is full of Wrackspurts."

"Full of what now?" Hermione asked worriedly. She had never heard of such a creature but one's head being full of them couldn't be healthy, right?

"They crawl into your ears and make your brain go fuzzy," Luna said as she happily grabbed another glass of pumpkin juice.

Ron made the universal gesture for crazy near his head, and Hermione frowned. She was actually quite sure those creatures didn't exist. She opened her mouth to say something, but Ginny shook her head.

"Better not," she whispered to Hermione. "So tell us, Hermione, what happened to you that got you so upset you splinched yourself?"

"Real subtle, Ginny," Ron grumbled.

Hermione cleared her throat. "I was - we were," she bit her lip hesitantly before continuing. "We were involved."

Harry whistled, and Ginny's eyebrows shot straight up to her hairline. Everyone else just kind of stared, but it was Ron who spoke up in the end. "You were dating a prat like Malfoy? A proper witch like yourself?"

Hermione frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Is it because you share the same values then?" Ron continued without a care in the world with a disgusted look on his face.

"Ronald Weasley," his mother admonished him just as his sister threw a potato at his head, which he barely avoided.

"What? I'm just asking what everyone is thinking!"

"I don't like Malfoy anymore than you do, Ron, but he has proven his worth and after what happened to Astoria... He doesn't hate Muggleborns anymore."

"But he used to?" Hermione asked quietly, staring at her plate.

Silence fell again around the room, and a few throats were cleared.

"My dear, Draco comes from a very strict family with some pretty... misguided values," Mrs. Weasley finally stated gently. "What's important to keep in mind here is that Draco chose his own path, and that he turned away from his family's values. Just as Sirius did."

Ron scoffed but didn't otherwise speak.

Hermione agreed with that. It would be worse if he had followed his parents blindly, and he had admitted to her that he had made mistakes in the past. She had been rather silly, hadn't she? She might have known him for over a year now, but how well did she truly know him?

"He was tasked with a rather important mission by Voldemort himself, but he didn't complete it in the end," Harry continued Mrs. Weasley's story. "His family tried to shelter him, but he came through for us in the end. I owe him my life."

Hermione raised her eyebrows in surprise as she studied Harry in a whole different manner now. "May I ask something?"

"Please," Mrs. Weasley said, laughing. "We're not that stiff around here, dear. Ask away."

Hermione nodded, not sure if she could shake her stiffness off that easily. "What exactly happened to Mrs. Malfoy?"

"It's not polite to gossip," Mrs. Weasley slowly said, and it reminded Hermione so much of Andromeda that tears filled her eyes again. Andromeda hadn't been supportive when she had told her about Draco's proposal, and Hermione had only recently understood why. She wasn't going to pretend that Andromeda's betrayal didn't hurt her, but she did understand the difficult position she had been in. It mustn't have been easy having to choose between the boy she had cared for for a long time and her dear friend.

"But they say that there's a mental illness on the women's side of the Greengrass family. When Astoria turned twenty-five, Scorpius was about two years old by then, she started losing her wits about her. Such a sad fate... It made me realize how blessed we are." Mrs. Weasley nodded, giving her daughter a sweet and yet sad smile.

"Fate definitely dealt the young Mr. Malfoy a bad hand," Mr. Weasley agreed as he pushed his plate away from him. "It's noble of him to keep caring for her even though her family stole half his fortune."

Oh wow. "Why did they steal half his fortune?"

Mrs. Weasley shrugged. "Because that's what thieves do? Who knows. Draco rarely talks about it."

Hermione nodded and looked away. "So what do you guys do exactly if you're the Resistance?"

Harry laughed at that. "We prefer to be called the Order of the Phoenix, actually. And before I answer that question, how are your legs?"

Hermione cocked her head to the side at the promise in his eyes and studied him. She was either going to love or hate this Order business, wasn't she?


	5. Revelations

__**A/N: My name, unfortunately, is not J.K. Rowling nor is it Charlotte Brontë. All characters belong to their rightful authors.**__

__Hiya,__

_Only one more chapter left after this one! (:_

_Let me know what you think!_

_Love,_

__Kelly__

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Five: Revelations<strong>

Hermione definitely loved this Order business. She loved the thrill of the fight. She loved helping people escape the evil that tried to take their lives. She threw another spell at one of the Snatchers coming their way.

"Keep runningn and only disapparate when you know no one can grab onto you!" Hermione shouted as she pushed the blond witch and her younger daughter out the door. She locked the door behind her and came face to face with one of the male Snatchers. The others slowly thrashed the beautifully decorated living room of the family that Hermione had just pushed out the door.

"Do you think you can take on all four of us by yourself? A female witch like you?" the one closest to her grumbled, his voice low and gritty. His hair looked like he hadn't washed it since he was twelve and his clothing was ragged and torn.

"Oh, joy," Hermione said drily. "How is it that Snatchers are always chauvinist pigs?" She raised her wand and pointed it at his face as she smiled smugly at his angry expression. "Besides... Who says I came alone?" At her words Harry and Ron threw the Invisibility Cloak off of themselves and all hell broke loose.

"Expelliarmus!" she heard Harry shout.

"Petrificus Totalus," Hermione shouted at the chauvinist wizard with the lack of personal hygiene. He fell down to the ground with a satisfying smack, but before Hermione could fire another spell excruciating pain made her fall to her knees.

She rolled over the ground, screaming out in pain, knowing that someone had just used the Cruciatus curse on her but incapable of doing anything about it. Just as sudden as the pain had started, it disappeared again.

A familiar redhead that she had grown to love and care for appeared in her vision and gave her a hand. "Blimey, Hermione, are you alright?"

"Thanks, Ron," she said with a grateful smile as he helped her up, not really answering his question. "Was that all of them?" she asked instead.

Harry kicked one of the immobile wizards in the stomach. "This is the werewolf that attacked that girl the other day."

Ron and Hermione both stared at the werewolf in question with disgust. Ralph Hemming was seen biting a six-year-old girl's throat in broad daylight two days ago. According to Hermione there was no greater scum than the kind that viciously harmed another sentient being. "Leave him here to rot," she said, knowing full well that Aurors would come to check this place out soon.

Being an Auror used to be a noble calling, but all the Aurors seemed to do these days was damage control. They had joined the Muggle Liaison Office at the Ministry. Basically they made sure that no more Muggles became aware of the wizarding world. The days of them being a police force were long gone; Voldemort had made sure of that.

Of course they were leaving all of them to rot for now, which was something Hermione didn't like at all. She had been working hard on a way to confine these wizards and witches but they simply didn't have the space. And besides, what if one of them got out? That would mean that their whole secret base would be compromised, which was simply unacceptable.

Hermione still found it uncharacteristic that the Order had simply taken her in without truly knowing who she was, but whenever she asked about it, people merely said that Harry had made the call to bring her in. She had tried to confront Harry and ask him what made him decide to accept her in their ranks so easily, but he wouldn't say a word. It was frustrating to be the one least in the know. Hermione had never felt so powerless as she did in moments like those.

One by one, the Golden Trio, as the Order had laughingly started calling them in the last few weeks, disapparated.

* * *

><p>"What happened to the Tracker family?"<p>

"We sheltered them with a noble family in Norway," Ron replied with his mouth full of chicken.

Hermione made a face. "Ron, do you ever stop eating?"

He swallowed and gave her a brilliant smile. "Rarely."

Hermione laughed and shook her head at his nonsense before she turned to Neville Longbottom. "They agreed to keep them hidden until a new identity could be provided for them."

"Which, of course, you're working hard on, I trust?" This came from Mr. Weasley.

"Of course," Hermione parroted a tad smug.

The group laughed, and the subject changed to less heavy subjects. Hermione chatted with Luna, who was complaining about her husband, Rolf. Apparently he kept forgetting to feed the Gulping Plimpies in their backyard pond.

Hermione stared at Luna for a second before she nodded. "How typical of him."

"Oh no, Rolf is a really nice person."

Hermione smiled into her cup of tea. She should certainly hope so, since Luna married him after all. "I'm glad."

"Me too," Luna said dreamily.

Hermione was about to say something else when her attention was drawn elsewhere. She had heard Harry mutter her name, and she tried to listen in to their conversation out of sheer curiosity.

"I haven't had the chance to ask her yet," Ron mumbled.

Harry sighed deeply. "Look, Ron, we're on a pretty tight time schedule here and I understand that you want to take things slow with her, but we are leaving for Normandy tomorrow. If you want to take Hermione with us-"

Hermione hadn't even heard about a mission to Normandy. She confusedly added a bit of sugar to her tea as she listened in.

"I do want to take her with us, but don't you think that those kind of measures are a bit extreme?"

"Extreme but necessary," Neville Longbottom chimed in. "She needs all the protection she can get in that kind of environment."

"She will never agree to it," Ron sighed rather sadly.

Just what was the extreme measure she had to take to be able to go on that trip with them? Honestly, how bad could it be?

"You never know," Harry said, his tone making it clear he didn't believe for a second she would either.

Ron scowled at his best friend, before his eyes met hers.

Hermione gave him a chipper smile, her Order training finally coming in handy. No, she hadn't been listening in. Not at all. Nope. "Oi, Ron, would you mind passing me the pepper?"

Ron perked up and gave her the shaker.

"Thank you," Hermione replied politely as she put the pepper next to her plate without using it.

"You know," Luna said softly as she seemed to sway to music only she could hear, "it's impolite to listen into other people's conversations."

"It's also impolite to talk about others behind their backs."

"Ah, yes," Luna agreed, and the two girls smiled at each other.

"Pepper?" Hermione offered.

"Don't mind if I do," Luna said with a big smile.

* * *

><p>"Hermione!"<p>

Hermione halted her steps. She was on her way to her bedroom for the night when Ron's voice called after her. With a curiosity that was bound to kill her someday, she turned around and gave him a smile. "Good evening, Ron."

She had definitely managed to talk more freely with the lot of them, as was bound to happen after having spent several weeks in their presence, but sometimes old habits really were hard to shake.

"Good evening," he replied as he gestured to one of the rooms on their right. "Do you mind if we talk for a moment in here?"

Hermione almost giggled with giddy anticipation. She was of course going to say yes to his question. Obviously she would go with them to Normandy. They had grown quite close over time, and she wouldn't want to be parted with them if she could help it. Besides, she loved doing what she did now. She was actually being proactive for once in her life and helping people while she was at it. She had never felt more alive.

Well, the time she had shared with Draco Malfoy had made her feel pretty alive too, but that was a different kind of exhilaration.

"What's the matter?" she asked as she took a seat on her favourite fauteuil. This study had grown almost as familiar to her as her own bedroom. She had lost count of the amount of hours she had spent here, looking up one thing or another for this or that mission.

"Nothing is the matter," Ron said slowly before he took a seat on the desk facing her. "I have a question for you."

"Alright," Hermione allowed with a knowing smile.

"I want you to be my wife."

Hermione felt like she had been sucker punched. She started coughing, and Ron had to actually slap her on the back before she managed to calm down. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

Ron gave her an uncomfortable smile. "Well, you see, we're going on one of our missions, yeah? To Normandy to be more exact and we're going undercover. Since Harry and Ginny are already married and Neville and Hannah are too, I will need an alibi too if I wish to go with them."

He wanted her to marry him for an alibi?

"I know how it sounds," Ron rushed, "but we make such an amazing team. They don't call us the Golden Trio for nothing, you know? And besides, I really do love you, Hermione. I wish we had more time to explore these feelings, and yes, I know what I want. I wish I could give you more time to explore your feelings for me. Oh bloody hell," he rambled. "I'm not making much sense, am I?"

"Not really," Hermione said, her voice high because of the panic she was currently experiencing. This was insane. "Let me recap here for a second. You wish to wed me," Hermione said, falling back in her old way of talking, "because it would provide you with an alibi?"

"And for your safety of course! It's not safe for a Muggleborn in Normandy right now."

"Ron," Hermione stated slowly, "it's not safe for a Muggleborn anywhere."

"But-" Ron ploughed on, "you'd be a Weasley then!"

Hermione shook her head fiercely, making her curls bounce wildly. "If I ever marry, I'm keeping my maiden name."

Ron's mouth fell open as he stared at her. "What - Why?"

Hermione shrugged. It was something she had decided while she had been bedridden a few weeks ago. She didn't want to take on anyone's name, not because she refused the protection it might provide but because she never wanted to lose herself again as she had with Draco. She had still lost her heart to him and it would probably forever be in his possession, she knew now. She wouldn't survive another heartbreak like that.

What probably hurt her even more was that Draco hadn't visited her once. He must have heard by now that she was part of the Order. Surely he must know where she was? Why hadn't he come for her? She had thought she never wanted to see him again, but Merlin, she was so wrong.

She smiled with her newly gained wisdom. "I can't marry you, Ron. I'm truly sorry, but I cannot."

Ron's face fell as he jumped off the desk. He tried to grab her hand, but she jerked it out of his reach. "I thought we had a connection?" He sounded so lost and hurt that it hurt Hermione too.

"We do have one. You're one of my dearest friends, Ron, but I am not in love with you."

"Not yet," Ron tried again. "Those feelings could grow."

"They could," Hermione allowed, "but my heart won't stand for it right now. I'm sorry," she murmured one last time before she stood up from her chair.

"Hermione, if we don't do this, I won't be able to assist Harry and the others in Normandy!" Ron exclaimed one last time, trying to sway her even though he knew he was fighting a lost battle.

Hermione gave him a sweet smile. "Yes, you can. You don't need me as an alibi, Ron." With those as her parting words, Hermione left the study and went straight to her room. She closed the door behind her and fell down on her bed, sighing deeply as she stared at the ceiling.

She was incredibly sad and relieved at the same time. She had done the right thing tonight, she knew. She might not be able to join the mission to Normandy, but she would definitely continue her work here in England.

* * *

><p>She was awoken that morning by a loud knock on her door. She grabbed a large jumper off one of her chairs, pulled it on and only after checking if she was completely covered, opened her door.<p>

"Good morning," Harry Potter whispered with a kind smile. "I'm sorry to disturb you so early, but we're about to leave in a couple of minutes."

"If you're here to change my mind," Hermione started but stopped when Harry held up his hand.

"I'm not. May I please come in for a second?"

Hermione opened the door a little wider and tired to ignore the voice of professor McGonagall at the back of her mind, telling her how improper this was. He was married for Merlin's sake, she doubted he'd try anything.

"Everything alright?" Hermione asked worriedly, after she closed the door behind them.

"Yes, quite," Harry replied. "Ron is not doing so good though."

Hermione looked away uncomfortably. "I am sorry for that but-"

"But you have unfinished business with Draco, I know. Do you remember asking me why I brought you to the Order after having found you?"

Hermione nodded as she crossed her arms before her chest.

"It was at the request of Draco that we took you in. I was with him when we found you, and I have to say, Hermione, I have never seen him out of sorts like that. He was going absolutely mad seeing you like that, but you refused his help. I don't think you remember that?"

Draco had found her? Hermione's heart soared as she shook her head.

"I thought so. You were feverish and probably hallucinating quite a bit. Anyway, after we had decided that you would never go with Draco willingly, he convinced me to take you with me, and so I did."

Hermione nodded and let the information sink in. Draco hadn't abandoned her then? Not completely at least. "Why did he never visit me here? He is part of the Order, right? Or was that a lie too?"

Harry had the decency to cringe a little at the jab. "We never lied to you, just were a bit vague with the truth. Draco is prohibited from ever coming near this place. He's too deeply undercover, and Voldemort has eyes and ears everywhere. When Draco told me that you were his fiancée, I was actually quite mad at him at first. That would totally blow his cover, you know. He would have to give up his position, and we would lose a huge advantage. But, Hermione, once I got to know you, I completely understood him. If anyone could make Draco happy again, it would be you. He isn't a friend of mine, and he probably never will be, but I do consider you one of my best mates."

"And I you," Hermione murmured.

Harry nodded with a smile that lit up his beautiful eyes. "So besides that and the troubles at his home, it was nearly impossible for him-"

"What kind of troubles?" Hermione interrupted him. "Is he quite alright?" Was he even alive? Had his cover been blown? She felt her arms drop to her sides, and her heart dropped with them. It pooled somewhere around her feet, and dread took its place in her chest.

"Oh, wow," Harry said surprised. "He's perfectly fine. It's Astoria. She..." Harry took a deep breath. "She climbed on the roof and jumped."

Hermione felt disgusted with herself for the sense of relief that made her able to breathe again. "Did she survive?" she asked and closed her eyes when she saw Harry's headshake.

Scorpius had lost his mother.

"I thought you deserved to know before I left. Draco had left specific instructions for me not to tell you any of this, but I was never any good with rules." Harry gave her a warm hug and pulled back a little so he could study her. "I'll miss you, Hermione Granger."

"And I you, Harry Potter."

"Be well, and I promise to write you whenever I can."

Hermione nodded her thanks. She was never any good with goodbyes, and this one particularly hurt. "Be safe."

"I'm the Chosen One, Hermione. I'm never safe," Harry joked.

For some reason that joke didn't soothe Hermione at all.


	6. Satisfaction

__**A/N: My name, unfortunately, is not J.K. Rowling nor is it Charlotte Brontë. All characters belong to their rightful authors.**__

__Hey guys,__

__I completely forgot to upload yesterday, I'm so sorry!__

__This is the last, and rather short, chapter to this short story! I hope you enjoyed the fic, lovelies!__

_Love,_

__Kelly__

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Six: Satisfaction<strong>

Malfoy Manor hadn't changed much in the time that Hermione had been gone. At least not that Hermione could see. She took a deep breath and hoped that he hadn't changed the password to the iron gates. She grabbed her wand and made big swiping motion as she softly whispered the French word for flower: fleur. The gates opened up, and Hermione walked straight up to the impressive white oaken doors. She knocked three times and waited impatiently for someone to open up.

It was Katherine that greeted her with a shocked look. "Miss Granger, you have returned."

"Indeed, I have," Hermione said with a kind smile. "Is Mr. Malfoy in?"

"Who is it, Katherine?"

"Honestly, why can't that woman trust me with even the littlest of things? I'm opening the door, not brewing a dangerous potion," Katherine mumbled under her breath to herself before she spoke up in a cheery tone. "It's Miss Granger, madam!"

Hermione winked at Katherine, strangely relieved that life at Malfoy Manor didn't seem to have changed any more than the house had in her absence. Hermione was ushered inside where a shocked Andromeda took her into her arms.

"You've come back," she whispered in Hermione's wild manes. "You've truly come back?" She pulled back to study her and Hermione returned the favor.

It saddened her that Andromeda seemed to have aged so much in only such little time. Hermione noticed several grey streaks in her hair now. "How have you been, Andromeda?"

"Oh, dear," Andromeda said, releasing Hermione with a shake of her head. "Things haven't been the same since you left."

"I heard about Astoria," Hermione said slowly.

Andromeda snorted. "Yes, it seems that she escaped her room again after Mr. Malfoy followed you." Andromeda's eyes quickly went to Hermione's legs.

"The scars will never go away," Hermione answered her unspoken question, "but they work just fine."

"We all have our scars," Andromeda mused dramatically in response. "As I was saying, Astoria somehow found her way to the roof. She tried to burn the house down, you know, but she only succeeded on the top floor, which has since been repaired. Draco tried going after her, but she refused his help."

I looked away. "I'm sorry I wasn't here."

Andromeda took her hand and guided her to the west wing, where Draco's study was. "You wouldn't have been able to help anymore than Draco could have. She was sick, Hermione. It might be a cruel thing to say, but at least now she's free of her demons, isn't she?"

Hermione swallowed and tried to push back her tears. She really felt so sorry for Astoria, and she wondered if there truly hadn't been anything that could have been done for her, even if St. Mungo's didn't offer the same knowledge it had before the war.

Andromeda left her before the white door, and Hermione stared at it with a heavy heart. She was afraid of what she would find behind it. Would she be welcomed back with open arms? Or will he send her away?

She bit her lip in worried anticipation before she knocked just once.

"_Entrez,_" his voice said, and her heart warmed.

She knew that if she did go inside, she might never leave again. She opened the door and walked in.

Draco Malfoy was seated behind his desk with his back to her. He was staring outside the gigantic window behind him at the woods behind the house. "You may leave the tea on my desk, Andromeda."

Hermione closed the door behind her and took several tentative steps forward. She waited and used this opportunity to study his profile. He, too, seemed older than he had before.

Draco suddenly turned his chair around with an annoyed scowl on his face, but stopped when he saw who was standing in his study. "Hermione," he breathed.

He stared at her as if she was some strange kind of vision, a vision that pained him. The tortured look on his face made Hermione bridge the last few feet between them and kneel in front of his desk chair.

"I must have fallen asleep again," Draco breathed as his hands slowly reached out to cup her cheek as if he seemed afraid she'd disappear if he touched her.

"If that's all you dream about these days, good sir," Hermione said teasingly, "then that's a sad thing indeed."

His hand finally touched her cheek, and she leaned into his touch, letting her hand cover his. Draco's eyes widened, and a smile slowly crawled on his face.

"I wouldn't call my dreams of you sad per se, Miss Granger," he said mischievously. "The crying you and I do in them is of a whole different nature, I assure you." He even had the audacity to waggle his eyebrows.

Hermione laughed as tears blurred her vision. "That's going to be your opening line? Are you sure?"

"Oh, Hermione, I believe actions speak louder than words, don't you?" Draco said as he slowly pulled her up and on his lap.

"Then why are you still talking?" Hermione whispered.

Her words hadn't even completely left her mouth before Draco's lips crushed against hers. The kiss they shared in that moment was filled with desperation, sadness, and love. Hermione thought she would explode with all the emotions that swirled inside her at that particular moment, and she pulled back with a gasp. "I've missed you," she told Draco as she kissed his forehead.

"And I you. How are your legs?"

Hermione kicked them gently in the air and laid her arm around his neck for extra balance. Draco's hands steadied her at her hips and he nuzzled her neck as she replied, "Still working fine."

Draco laughed, and pulled back so he could look at her. He seemed to memorize every inch of her face, every freckle, as if he was still afraid she'd disappear again.

"We have much to discuss, you and I," Hermione told him in a stern voice but with eyes filled with joy.

"That we most certainly do," Draco agreed. "But I feel like the time for talking hasn't come yet," he said teasingly as he nudged his nose against hers.

Hermione giggled, and for the next few hours they acted instead of talked.

* * *

><p>So she married him.<p>

On the fifth of January she became Hermione Jean Malfoy Granger. They discussed many things in the months after their reunion, and it most definitely took them some time to work through some of their issues. Hermione had expressed her regret over her rash decision-making and Astoria. Draco had to give up his undercover mission, as Harry had predicted, but he didn't seem to mind leaving that toxic environment behind at all.

Now they lived in one of the Order's safe houses in Greece, taking in refugees whenever the Order sent them their way. Hermione had, in the end, found a way for the Order to hold prisoners, and she had heard from Harry and Ron that the Normandy mission had been a success. She had been invited to the next, and possibly their last, mission. For if the Order succeeded in destroying all seven Horcruxes, Voldemort's reign of terror would be over.

But those were worries for a later day, Hermione thought as she stared at her little girl. Three years had passed since their reunion, and the Malfoy family had considerably grown. Her little boy, called Caelum, grabbed at his father's trousers, begging to be picked up so he could see. Hermione slowly swayed back and forth with her baby.

"She's beautiful," Scorpius said. They had, of course, smuggled him out of Hogwarts as soon as they could. It had been a bad idea anyway to send him to that place. Hermione liked to remind Draco of that every now and then.

Hermione nudged Scorpius with a smile. "Do you want to name her?"

"Can I?" he asked as he gratefully took his sister from Hermione.

"You're sixteen now, son," Draco laughed. "I think you'll manage just fine."

She was barely a day old, but Hermione already loved her more than life itself.

"Wendy," Scorpius finally said, snapping his fingers.

Hermione laughed. "Wendy, it is," she allowed.

"I'll be your Neverland, little Wendy," Scorpius whispered softly, and Hermione grinned widely as her husband sat down next to her on the bed. Scorpius kneeled so Caelum could admire his little sister for the first time.

"So tell me, wife," Draco said cheekily, "are you happy?"

"Well, I believe I'm not dissatisfied," Hermione teased him, making him laugh. "Yes, husband, I'm happy. Deliriously so."

She didn't know what the future had in store for them, or if they would be able to defeat Voldemort, but Hermione knew she would be able to face it as long as she had Draco by her side.

"Good," he replied cockily.

Hermione shook her head as he bent down and gently kissed her.


End file.
